ABSTRACT
Wife-beating is a form of male violence towards women that has received much attention in American social science literature in the last two decades. In studying the primate literature, there are three areas that relate to an evolutionary psychological view on wife abuse. The first involves sexual dimorphism between male and female of a given species and incorporates Darwin's theory of sexual selection. The second comprises the arena of mate retention, which includes such behaviors as mate guarding, sexual jealousy, and sequestration. The third area comprises social interactions between male and female partners in which real or perceived non-reciprocation can generate aggressive responses. One strategy used by female primates to combat male aggression was to form a coalition with other females or with a male animal. The concept of social reciprocity is useful in explaining why habitual abusers feel justified in beating their wives.
